Had Gather Cut Back on Points?

Gather has cut back points. It's taking longer to get to cashout

We no longer get anything for viewing or commenting so people have stopped viewing and commenting...Not everyone, but a good majority have...I still view and comment because I too love Gather and its people.

I think you get SOME for viewing and commenting, but not as many.
I view and comment A LOT more than I post, and while I'm still getting some for it, it has slowed down.

I too was wondering about that. I notice that I get very few points anymore.

Joy's right -- you still get points for viewing but they've obviously changed the formula, so now there's fewer to go around.

sorry I didn't mean to imply zero, though it might as well be

Going back to an upgrade over a month ago, Gather has drastically cut back on awarding points. Whereas, I was picking up a good 100 - 150 points a day prior to this happening, now, I'm making as few as 10 points a day (1 point an hour) doing pretty much the same thing I had been doing before...no more than 20 - 25 points a day. I've cut back on posting and viewing because it isn't worth the bother to earn 10 to 15 cents a day. I figure, at the rate I'm going, I may pick up $10 - $25 a year where I earned a good $2,000 annually here. Some haven't been affected at all and are still earning a decent income, but others have seen a drastic drop in what they make.

... unless we get a technique going to help us earn more ... we will be lost in the dross of this depression here in Gatherland ...

... i still enjoy Gatherland ... but yes, it has become very slow in everything from page loads, to points, to comments, to postings, too .... well you get the drift ...

peace & love to all mankind! continue to BE the change you want to see in the world ... today! everyday!

I thought it was just me.... I have noticed that it takes forever to get any points on here now..

I have been getting far less points than normal.

mine are close to the same..

Yes, it changed a month ago, see Tom Gerace's post on the new point system.
Basically, Mary, unless you post original content - articles or pictures - which are viewed by the outside community and/or commented on by your gather friends - you will see very few points.
So post something if you want points and no more copy and paste, many have and are being flagged for that now and their points are frozen.

ahh that clears it up even further!

What Rose said

Yep, what Rose said~

I am posting a lot, still, and getting about the same amount of views. I've got more than 20 comments on several articles. I know a few people from Twitter came over to read a few of my posts on here, and yet I'm making about half the points I was. Also, as far as I can tell, I'm getting nothing at all for posting photos.

and if we get points for posting there is nobody who is going to view them sooooooooo.... it is a circle of the unknown.......

precisely!

I've been commenting and writing articles here this past week, and my points have come up a mere pittance. I think I have gained three points in about three days times.

After the update, the one before last, they have cut down some. Before that they were putting out the word that they did not want spam and also cut and paste from magazines or newspapers. So, what I think is, people who did those either left or stopped doing it. Also many people went to these game sites or red gage. Anyway, everything is down.

Gather had cut down quite a lot but then lately I've had big point boosts the past week or so.

Whereas mine seem to be completely stuck now. I was seeing some increase, but despite posting every day I've not seen even 10 points in the last few days.

Nice to see you, Mary. I had not been on much, like the "old" days, either, but when I did come on, points did not move for a month, and tho I am douing nothing different, the last few days have finally started moving. Go back and read the articles from Tom Gerache to
clear things up, my dear. good luck!

Thanks penni--good to see you again too. Let's keep in touch.

Yes, I believe the point system has cut way back, probably due to the economy. It is taking me alot longer to receive points than it was in the past and I'm doing exactly the same thing I was. I think we still get points for viewing/commenting but it is alot slower than it used to be.

so far mine are mostly the same getting about 70 pts a day.....
they say we are getting very little for our own viewing now but more when others view our stuff.
I wouldn't think you would be affected much because you are still posting here as you did before (or so it seems to me)

what are your number 1 and number 2 paid sites?

Squidoo is my best so far, I'm at 33 lenses and my blogs are 2d. While I'm not raking in the big bucks, I'm leading up to it. Do a lot of affiliate marketing on both squidoo and the blogs, plus I enjoy doing them.

I am going to check these sites ;) thanks

I signed up ~ but it will take me some time to figure it all out. Any tips?

if you are talking about squidoo then it does take some time to learn. i have 55 lenses built but I am still learning. It's best to check the forums and such for advice. There are so many modules to choose from when building.

I have 55 lenses, but I guess 54 because they are taking down, or have taken down my mycoolcontests lens. I think all that was wrong with it was I had a text module with a yuwie banner....I sure made sure to go take yuwie out of the other few that I had it in!
I have 2 more book review lenses to build but can't get my scanner to work for some reason to photo the books.

Cecelia - I have a Squidoo guides for newbies directory, if you'd like to check it out.

Just found you on Squidoo Mary, I have pretty high ranks but nothing earned so far...People say I'm doing well for a newbie, shrug

It takes a few months. I think reporting is about three months after you start--I'm slowly adding a little $$$ here and a little $$$ there but mostly I like putting my amazon and click bank products on the lenses and get some $$$ from those. Don't get discourage, just get better by doing. Check Cecelia's Guide for newbies, above.

I am getting fewer points too.

I get 20-30 points a day, don't matter if I post 2 or 4 articles, still get that much.

I have dial--up, so everything is slow. I have gotten in the habit of keeping reading material next to the computer and dipping into it while waiting for pages to load.
I find if I post 3-5 times a day and comment, then my points are around 50 daily. Since they used to average 17 each day, this is a great improvement for me.

Yes, the points have gone way, way down, and it takes a lot longer now to cash out than it did in the past. There are very few points for commenting and viewing.....the most points are for posting articles, it seems. Lots of people have left Gather, for other places.

Very interesting. Points for me was the icing on the cake for being part of Gather so it doesn't really bother me that much. I just wish I could get more people to read my writing. I just posted "A Life Of Dreams and haven't had a lot of people read it....sigh

I guess from what I've been reading--people aren't reading and commenting since they don't get points for commenting just posting. I'll find your Life of Dreams.

People are still reading and commenting. Just the ones who had to be paid to show up, now aren't showing up. Those I think we're better off without because they weren't really interested in the content anyway, just the points for opening the page.

I have to agree with Lune, mary. my points were so slow I thoght they were getting lost in cyberland, but after hanging for a couple of months, they have come back to momma..... yay!

Mary....this is from Gather Help.....

Earning points
A portion of the Gather advertising revenue is returned to its members as Gather Points™. We use different algorithms to determine which individual user activities are creating community value. Most points are awarded to members who share content that proves valuable to the community. To protect against fraudulent activity we do not share the exact algorithm we use and we change it from time to time. To maximize your earnings, share great experiences in the form of posts, photos, or videos that are popular with other members and that even bring new people to Gather to participate.

Please note: Gather will turn-off all points earning for members that are found to regularly republish content that they do not own. We will do so without prior notification or warning. We reserve the right to remove points earned by members sharing content that does not belong to them as well.

This seems to be "fair"(though I dislike that word) and may be helpful to everyone in determining how to earn more points. This particular post may well earn several points.

Make sure if you post something that is yours that you used the same exact name when you posted it elsewhere. I had an article removed from eHow because they did not think it was mine because I had posted it on Associated Content under a slightly different username.

My points are as slow as the seven year itch.

My points have slowed down as well. It does take too long for the pages to load.

My points are up. I continue to comment and get a few points for that, but I am posting more. Posting gets not a point. It is the post views that earn points. Advertisers want traffic, and causing traffic generates points.

Attract people to your posts. You get points!

i see you got your answer. but there's so much more to this site than points tho.

Yes, there is more to this site than points, but if I can get the same 'social inter-action' from a place I can get benefits, then I'd be foolish to not go there with my how to and health articles. Sometimes I write my articles in my word program and copy/paste them here--I understand that keeps me from getting points.

Mary, that kind of copy/paste is ok because its something you wrote. The problem lies with copying things you found on the internet and then past it here.

Thanks Rose,
I didn't know that points are frozen for copying and pasting. Thanks for letting us know.

Sorry, but yes. They want more chat and writing, and are giving less to readers.
I don't like it. Without readers, why write.

Wasn't Gather originally a writer's group?

Yes, but they have been leaning more and more toward socializing from what I have seen. Perhaps they wish to regain some of what they were.
I don't really know of course.

The points haven't really cut back, they just are not awarded in the same ways as they were before.

Mine have seemed to slow down as well ... But I've also been around alot less than I was before.

I think the way the points are doled out are always changing ... but I'm not sure.

no no no....

There are FAR FEWER people participating on Gather and far LESS participation by all.

Gather CAN and I am sure DOES and probably HAS altered the private algorithm for points, so that each published content, view, content, whatever methods one uses for points is worth less per each.

But the main thing is always participation.

Bad economy and people have to choose their time carefully. If people have time.

Bad economy and people are emotionally down.

Bad economy and.

Bad weather.

Good weather like today and people are outside...

So it is only that your conclusion is wrong....

I have always kept careful tabs on how many notifications I get in 24 hours. My total number of friend connections has not changed much in 2009, but in late 2008 and early 2009 I got

4,000 notifications or more in 24 hours.

Then it dropped to about 2,000 notifications in 24 hours.

Now in the past few weeks, it has dropped even more to about 1,500 in 24 hours.

I just looked at my notifications. 1,700 in 24 hours.

Some minor changes such as more or less per views, etc. Does not really change anything, but as anyone can see, there is MUCH MUCH less participation. That is what makes or breaks it...

Breaks......

The points are still there albeit slower since the update they had several weeks ago.

If Gather is your #3 site what is #1 and 2?

Squidoo--I have 33 lenses and make money off of most of them and 3 blogs where I sell amazon and affiliate products.

Cool, at some point I am going to have to publish my first lense at Squidoo... I have been quite busy and lazy so far... *sigh*

By January when cash was stopped, I was earning a 25 dollar GC in every 12 days, or 2 and one half per month.

I COULD work my butt off here by commenting constantly and publishing constantly and making sure I connect to every new person, but I don't have time to do that.

But I could probabyl keep to that earning schedule.

But I am very busy offline with my manuscript and so I earn less than 2 and one half 25 buck GCs per month...

I don't care that much..

you have to do a lot of commenting to get any thing for it but i still do if you put something on then you get a few more [oints but not a lot but i like gather so i keep doing things on here

I seriously think gather needs to rethink its point system, as everyone is very unhappy with the changes to the point system.

Works for me. Yesterday about this time I had 8000 points. I just looked, I now have 8221 points. That seems okay.

And I'm with Palin, I don't care that much.

i am about the norm, notice some slow down yet it also warm out and alot ar egone for vaction and family time, I hope you stick it out,, I am here mainly for the friends ,,

points are going really slow now..

My points are the same, even better some days, than they used to be. What they did was adjust the weight, drastically reducing points for commenting (so now people are reading what they want to read/what draws their attention and not just viewing anything and everything for the view), but increasing points for posting. Tom's been encouraging us to promote ourselves more, similar to how we do for Squidoo and other paid-to-write sites.

Many have found redgage helpful for increasing views, because it is a social bookmarking site. If you managed to miss all the buzz on gather about that you might check it out. We earn points for views, there, and redgage has cash giveaways as well that many of our gather friends have won. (I see lots of familiar Squids there, too) I've been using it to bookmark both Squidoo and Gather articles and have seen quality click-throughs. Not huge numbers but worth doing, and they continue coming through over time. I only spend a few minutes a day there, less than five some days.

It's been over a month now. You still get points for commenting, just not as much.

Stopping by with a 10!

Glad you said something about the pages loading slow. I was beginning to think it was my computer!

I don't think it has changed since last upgrade.

I'm surprised your points are off. If you post several articles a day, it should be a decent amount.
However, my computer has always been slow, but some pages are extremely slow now. It's harder for me to post anything long.

I have not been on much either due to family reasons and husbands health and super busy. Gather was my #1 place to be not anymore. Facebook is now. I am there most the time and a good many Gather folks are there. No awards that I know of but lots of fun and people just being good friends. I am slowing connecting to most my Gather friends there which at the moment are over 600 here on Gather. I love to write but stopped as few were even reading or commenting and it is rather disheartening when no one or few even bother to read. I am seriously considering deleting most my posts. poems and stories especially and asking gather to delete most of my groups. It is not fun or warm much anymore and I AM SICK to DEATH of all the politics constantly on here it is like the biggest thing now and I am tired of seeing it. God or no God this world is going to hell in a handbasket. If there is a God and I believe there is and a Savior then he will come as he said before humanity totally annhilates all life on Earth. If not well then we will all have our troubles ended at once. No Earth; no salvation. No worries. But I am 100% sure that is not the case. So yeah less gather points, less reason or incentive to stay. Maybe a lot of us should write the administration. Tom, Maryann, Chuck etc and tell them we are just plain leaving they have about killed the goose that laid the golden egg.

Posting takes time and when you have 6-8 grandkids to watch, a home to run, a sick husband, canning and gardening, firewood to get in and a multitude of other things posting is not priority and so there is no time to post several times per day.

Well I suppose I could get on and post some small hi all how ya doing about 50 times but that is stupid. My thoughts and opinions. Today I am home did not go to church decided to be home for a change. Grandkids 5 went home about an hour ago. I get some time to relax, some me time for a change.

he, he, he. Jen D. You made me laugh. Not about your husband being sick but your last paragraph was pretty close to what we've all been reading lately. Hope your hubby gets well very soon.

Jen said: "No awards that I know of but lots of fun and people just being good friends."

That's the thing. If this is how you gathered anyway - fun and being friends - then you were just fine through this change. You were also fine through the change if you posted things that search engines picked up, and that people benefited from reading. <--- Many of those people are doing even better now than they were before.

On the other hand, if your social group was just here for the points, or mostly so, not actually friends or interested in a connection's content, then yeah, those people are hurting. And those who find themselves in that situation end up adapting (changing their social group), complaining a lot and still not earning anything for it, or leaving.

Some of the ones trying to adapt are noticing who still comments around and are connecting with those people, while the ME-ME-MEs who don't comment around and are suddenly posting a lot of chitchat articles throughout the day - well, many of us aren't even opening those. No views = no points = no point to posting it.

Thanks everyone. Since I haven't been on a much as I used to be, I wondered if it was me or the system. I would love it if Gather would let you post links to your blogs or web sites the way Squidoo and Blogger do--it would have me coming back more and more.

I love Gather and my friends but as a Sr. on SS, I need supplemental income wherever I can get it.

Enjoyed hearing from all of you.

i don't get many points either. Its been very slow.

I feel you Mary. Maybe you have to re-write everything you write on the other site here too. That's all you need and best of Luck.

Thanks--I decided to do all my composing on the Gather editor and copy paste to other sites--like squidoo and blog.

Dunno - I just cashed out 6,250 for $100.00 in Home Depot cards. Took me two days to earn the last 200 points. I've earned about 100 today, and I've no doubt I could average 100 a day if I wanted to keep posting 'controversial' posts. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE those posts, but I only have strong opinions on a few things that interest other people. Besides, that's 3,000 points a month... and that's only $50.00 a month. Dunno that it's worth it.

Besides, I'm hearing that folks want more Old Man and Me stories. And I like writin' 'em. But they[re only good for about 15 t0 50 comments - hardly the thing to make me rich. So-o-o-o... I think I'll forget about the points for awhile.

Chuck, all I can say is ... Wow!

Chuck, I look for your posts and your comments--you tickle my brain and get me thinking--I love our back and forth camaraderie.

I used to regularly post Quick Tips 4 U--similar to this--
Health:Science is finding more truth to the wisdom that food heals, but mostly they are finding that food is one of the best illness preventatives. Recent research has shown that cabbage might be an anti breast cancer food.

Wealth:Save on your power bills by opting with your service to cycle through your utility use. They generally will turn off your heating system for a brief time giving you a discount on your bill.

Diet:Not a breakfast eater. Have something even if it's just a smoothie with yogurt and fruit or a protein bar. It will keep you from grabbing a fast food, high calorie snack before lunch.

Exercise:No time to workout? It's been found that giving yourself short bursts of exercise as you go about your day such as swinging your arms when walking from one place to another, can be useful as an exercise routine.

Style:Warm, mushroom brown eye shadow looks good on all skin shades. You can wear it from day to night and it always looks just right.

Spiritual:The poorest man, the humblest soul can be happy if he but opens and revels in the infinite storehouse of unseen treasures that are his.

They would get 19 0r 20 comments--when I started doing Agree or Disagree, or any political post, it would be over the 100's. I now do the Quick Tips on a blog with affiliate and amazon products.

As I said, I'm a Sr on SS and need supplemental income.

The points are crawling theres no doubt. The last time I was able to cash out was Nov 2008 for a $25 gc. I have been taking Gather survey to help, but always end up having to contact Gather support to find out where they are. Last time it took me e-mailing them 3 times to finally get them. I have one some points in another contest recently that will help, if Gather doesn't forget me again.

I agree it has been alot slower. From what I have read in the past they are going by more originality. I admit I don't post alot but at the same time as much as I rate it should be for more then what I am putting in for it at the end of a day.

It's summertime, so things are slower....I'm sure they will pick up come fall.

My points have been about the same. I did have a major slow-down, but then it seems they picked back up a bit~

points are very slow lately but i will continue to stay i like it here on gather not just for points

i just posted something similar ... i was wondering where everyone was and why posts are being empty, it seems that no one likes to comment anymore and i miss tons of people that used to be here. as far as i know you get more points for posting things and if people view them. i hardly make points these days, cuz i dont know what to share...

I realize and wish Gather would, that there are people here who only read and comment because like you, they don't know what to share, or like others, don't feel comfortable as writers. We need writers, viewers and commenter's.

oh try to empty out your gather emails, i had 4000 in there and gather was loading sooooooo slow, i deleted everything and it runs way faster now...

Thanks, I try to do that daily--I check my gather mail at least 2x a day--glad to know keeping it clear helps.

Gather is a business and needs advertising revenue to survive. With the economy in bad shape less is being spent on advertising, so they decrease points. Decreasing points means less people will use gather. Fewer people, less advertising, catch 22. In my opinion they need to increase points, which means more users and more advertisers. result, more income for gather.

Hi Steve. That makes sense to me.

Me too. If people are leaving because of the slow down in points, then they aren't contacting friends outside of Gather to come read what they find here.

We don't get points for comments anymore. I haven't seen a big drop in comments yet. I use Paypal to cash out. The point value was raised recently and the email says it now takes 21 - 31 days to process the transfer.

I've been using paypal too. March 13 was my last $25.00 paypal cash out, and I'm not really close to $25.00 yet

I see your question has already been answered... just stopping by to say I'm glad they're still giving any points at all... with the economy being what it is, I hope they don't stop or worse yet go under like Boomertowne did.

Me too--I have so enjoyed the friendships and articles I read here. I would miss this venue.

I think my points are actually, even though it takes a bit longer, have pretty much stayed steadier than before.
I'm getting points quicker I think, but receiving the rewards are taking much longer and not the points.

Everything is about the same for me, actually. But, I am doing the same things as before.

gather has become more focused on content then on comment

it was bound to happen...

I think the activity on this site has slow down in every aspect.

I guess so, but i still love it here, its my connection to the world!